US groups fight to ban the broadcast of pornography in hotel rooms

Conservative groups in the USA have demanded a crackdown on the broadcast of pornography in hotel rooms.

A coalition of 13 groups - including the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America – have taken out full-page ads in some editions of USA Today urging the Justice Department and FBI to investigate whether some of the pay-per-view films available in hotels violate federal and state obscenity laws.

The coalition also is trying to draw attention to CleanHotels.com, a directory of hotels and motels across the USA that pledge to exclude adult offerings from their in-room entertainment service.

Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, told the Seattle Post: "These are places that you take your family - these are respectable institutions. Anything that brings porn into the mainstream is a concern. It just desensitises people."

Hilton and Marriott defended the policies that make adult films widely available at their affiliated hotels.

A spokeswoman for Hilton said it considers adult films to be an acceptable option because they can be ignored or blocked out by guests not wishing to view them.

"Really ultraconservative groups try to target the hotels in their zest to eliminate porn," she told the Seattle Post. "In their zest to have their personal morals prevail, they're eliminating choice for others."

The Marriott spokesman said none of the programming offered by the company is illegal, insisting that adult films are a standard part of today's hotel business. 

"In-room movies are a revenue stream," he said. "This is a business matter."

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By Daniel Thomas

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